Liquor Tears
by little red after the wolf
Summary: AU If you don't think your life can get worse, you've never drank three bottles of champagne at your dad's wedding. — love square (tw: bullying tw: alcohol abuse)
1. Toxic

**A/N: So, if you want me to turn this into a full on multi-chap, just let me know in a review. If you guys want it to be that, I'll make it that.**

* * *

Lauren had already taken the liquor from Amy's greedy hands and thirsty sorrow. She was just trying to be a good sister, if they were going to seriously have to _be_ sisters, she might as well be a good one. Besides, Amy isn't as bad as she'd thought.

But now she was draining the glasses, greedily clinging to the bottle. She'd been fine until she'd let her mind slip to what Tommy had said.

_"You're a dude!?"_

No. She _wasn't_ a dude. She _isn't_ a dude. She's a girl. She's just . . . That. But the lines are blurring and her thoughts are swelling, getting madder and she's gaining incentive to hurt him like he hurt her. She hates him. She fucking hates him! He called her a dude! She _isn't _a dude!

Tears well in her eyes, burning and threatening to poor out. She can feel her shattered heart rising to her throat, swollen to the size of a golf ball and with sharp edges, cutting her sore throat. She needs to clean the wounds, she drinks and she drinks, willing herself to forget and never remember that asshole!

Through the blurring lines and burning tears, as the jerkass cut her off, she makes out a brunette, tall, buff, clothed in a suit. She rises to her feet, swearing a jumbled mess at the boy cutting her off, she steadies herself, blinking to see clearer.

"Liam?" She mumbles, realizing who it is. She hates him. She fucking hates him too. But he's looking at her, his hair a mess, with these lustful, drunken eyes and she feels like a fucking girl (which she _knows_ she is) as his eyes trail her body, her dress hanging off a shoulder and a clear bra strap visible, she can see him undressing her with his eyes.

Her face flushes even more, part of her brain (the part that's just barely clung to sobriety) wants to get mad at him and scream at him for being a pervert, that same part of her brain remembers hearing Karma's confession about fucking him. But the rest of her brain is happy that he just sees her as a girl.

And then his eyes are staring, hungrily, into hers.

She can see just how wasted he is and she knows she's so wasted she's taken her hair down but she still nods.

* * *

It's a drunken blur of hungry, needy kisses with tongues twirling, getting to know the other's mouth. Her hands are small and in his hair, his low on her hips, feeling her body through the dress. He presses his muscular body against hers, desperate to grind his hips into hers and relishing in the feeling of her breasts pressing against him.

His hand squeezes her ass, she whimpers with a moan tangled in her throat.

She pushes away from him, gasping for air with her face red and her body almost shaking.

"Wha's wrong?" He asks, exhaling deeply, his hands firmly gripping her waist.

"Shut up," she grumbles, fumbling with his shirt.

"Oh, heh, eager, aren't we?" He teases, helping her to remove his shirt. Her eyes flick up and down, taking in the sight of his abs. He smirks, flexing a little. "Like what you see, Lauren?"

Her face flushes, angrily. She kisses him, fiercely, her hands firmly on his muscular shoulders.

"Fuck," Liam mutters. Then her dress is torn and flying off somewhere. He runs his hands up her bare skin, wishing her underwear was gone. "You're fucking hot."

"You too," she whispers, her words slurring a bit, moaning a little as he kisses her collarbone, unhooking her bra. She whimpers, gasping a little as he nibbles the flesh a little. "Oh, God," she moans, as he rubs her breasts a little. No boy has ever played with her breasts. "More," she gasps, barely able to speak. "Oh, fuck, more! Please!"

He smirks, flicking her right nipple before kissing it. Her back arches and she moans his name, loudly. His mouth is around her breast, sucking it. She can barely see straight as the moans leave her throat.

"Please, please, Liam!" She all but screams as his fingers slip into her panties, rubbing her clit.

His mouth leaves her breast, his hard on starting to ache. His eyes red, he kicks his pants off, his boxers falling off with them.

Her eyes go wide, she's never seen a cock before. Definitely not a hard one. She can feel her face getting hotter.

He stares at her as, drunk as he is, he realizes it. He's her first.

But then her hands wrap around it, starting to pump. His eyes roll back, pleasantly. She's drunk and sloppy but there's something that feels so fucking good about her touch.

"Wait," he breathes out, "are you . . . A virgin?"

She pauses, part of her wanting to pull her sheets close, to block the sight of her privates but the rest too drunk to and scared to do it. Instead, she nods delicately.

Guilt creeps over him.

But then her lips are on his, her tongue in his mouth, twirling around with this weirdly sexual femininity. His fingers slide by her pussy, rubbing gently (he's too damn good at fucking when he's drunk, he realizes). He doesn't mean to hurt her.

She moans, softly, whimpering slightly. She sounds like Karma, she's making those same little noises. And then he forgets it's Lauren, who's never been fucked and who's drunk and hurting, and he shoves his fingers inside. She lets out a small scream that the angry part of him loves, his cock hardening.

He pushes her down on her own bed.

And then he's inside her, roughly slamming into her, harder, faster, she's screaming in pain and he only goes harder and faster, even though he knows she's hurting, his drunk brain won't realize it's Lauren, and even if she's a bitch to him, it's her first time ever and he's just fucking her senseless like an asshole. He keeps going, grunting sharply and trying to gain even more friction inside her.

"You're fucking tight," he grunts, as she screams once more.

She's scared there's blood over her sheets as he fucks her as roughly as he can. Her insides won't ease up to it and she curls up a little, her small body becoming even smaller against him. Even though it hurts so fucking much, there's this raw ache of pleasure in her.

She screams again. He only goes faster.

* * *

His head is pounding.

"What time is it?" He mumbles, as his brain registers something small and soft cuddled against his bare chest. "Where am I?" He's never seen this bedroom before.

Panic flares, where the fuck is this? What did he do last night!?

_Who_ did he do last night?

Terrified, he slowly looks to the body holding him.

Blonde hair. Very blond hair. No. Nononono! He pulls the covers down a bit, noticing red on a sheet.

A small, blonde girl, with fair skin. Lauren Cooper. Whose virginity he took.

She stirs, her hands twitching a little. Her eyebrows furrow in confusion. Her hands search his skin, feeling his muscles. His heart is pounding in his throat as her eyes shoot open.

"Oh, my _fucking_ God!" She exclaims, sitting up and pulling her blood stained sheets to cover her body. His eyes still absorb the quick glance of the curve of her breasts.

"Did we . . .?" He knows the answer, he remembers, but he asks anyways.

"Get the fuck out!" She tells him, her body sore and a sniffle escaping.

"I'm so sorry, Lauren, I didn't - "

"Get the fuck out," she repeats, fighting back tears. Her virginity. She . . . She gave it to him . . .

"I took your virginity, didn't I?" He whispers, somberly, guiltily.

". . ." She looks down, gripping her sheets tightly, "you see the blood."

"I'm such an asshole," he mutters, "I wasn't even gentle, was I?"

". . . No," she whispers.

"Look, Lauren, I was drunk, I was being stupid, I'm so, so sorry - if I could take it back, I would! Please, please don't tell anyone," he apologizes, wishing to grasp her hands.

"I knew it," she breathes out, "you're ashamed . . ."

"Ashamed?" He repeats, blinking, "what do you mean?"

"You're embarrassed, you don't want anyone to know you slept with me," she accuses, glaring at him. _That fucking asshole! He's just like Tommy . . . I'm ugly . . ._

"No, it's not that, I just . . . It's because of Karma, okay? I mean, hell, I'd probably get high fives if any of the guys knew that I slept with you, you're really, really hot, I mean, beautiful," he awkwardly tells her.

"No, I'm not," she grumbles, "you just don't want me to tell people you have a small penis."

"You are, really, I mean, you're dating Tommy for a reason . . . Oh, shit," he breathes out. Tommy. Her boyfriend. He's such an asshole! How could he forget that Lauren has a boyfriend!? Even if Pablo escorted her to the wedding, she's still dating Tommy.

"We broke up," she admits, quietly.

"You broke up?" Liam asks, his eyebrows furrowing.

"I told him a secret and . . . He rejected me for it," she looks down, sadly.

There's a knock at her door. "Hey, Lauren, I, uh, wanted to say thanks, for being a good sister. You stopped me from doing something really stupid and cheered me up with cake, that . . . That was really, weirdly nice of you. It's Amy, by the way, in case you didn't realize. I made you some breakfast, if you want it, as thanks."

Liam looks at her strangely, like he's reevaluating her.

And then she hisses a few cusses and says, "get the fuck out of my room," smacking him with a pillow. He flinches on reflex, quickly moving to the window, prying it open. She looks around, desperately, trying to find his clothes for him. "Here's your boxers, moron!" She whisper shouts, tossing it at him. She notices his shirt under her covers.

The door knob turns. "I'm coming in now," Amy announces, hesitating slightly.

Lauren pulls his shirt over herself, not wanting her step-sister to see her naked.

_I slept with my step-sister's best friend's ex on the night of my dad's wedding because my boyfriend dumped me for being intersex. Fuck my life._

"Hey, uh, sis," Amy smiles a little.

"Good morning." She knows Amy sees the blood on her sheets.

_Fuck my life hard._

* * *

Hold back that follow or favorite,

And trade it for a review,

It'll serve as feedback &amp; motivation for my writing tricks,

And otherwise, I might just slap you.

\- Queen Alison the Obstinate


	2. Afterthoughts

**A/N: So, I got four reviews asking for more and two PM's asking for more. I guess you guys want more, and it was easier to deliver than I expected. Here we go.**

"Um, Lauren, why is there blood on your sheets?" Even though she knew Amy saw the blood, Lauren can't help but be fucking terrified.

"No reason," she quickly lies.

"No reason for the _blood on your sheets?_" Amy questions, her eyebrow shooting up and her eyes widening. Doubt highlights her face.

"Look, it's none of your business, Amy, just leave the breakfast on my dresser or something," Lauren says, trying to rush Amy out so she can get dressed.

"Why is your hair so messy? And whose shirt is that? It's way too big to be yours," she notes.

"It's none of your business!" The blonde exclaims.

"Lauren, just, please, why is there blood on your sheets? Are you okay?" Amy sets the tray down, seating herself on the edge of Lauren's bed.

". . ." She's quiet, fiddling with the collar of Liam's shirt.

"Lauren, you can tell me, I . . . I'm your sister," Amy whispers, tentative to put a hand of comfort on her step-sister.

"Nothing happened, Amy, I'm _fine,_" she snaps.

"There's blood on your sheets, I get it if you don't wanna talk to me but I can get Bruce or Mom because you're not fine right now."

Lauren feels a pang in her chest. Her step-sister _cares_ about her.

"I'm _fine,_ Amy, back off," she defends.

"No, you're not," Amy murmurs.

Her mind is racing, should she tell the truth? _"I slept with Liam, my first time, btw, right after Tommy dumped me because I was drunk and wanted to get back at him, completely unprotected so I could have herpes for all I know."_ Yeah, no, that was not the kind of confession she wanted to make.

"It's nothing, okay? I probably just spilled wine on my sheets last night, I was drinking," she grumbles.

"You were drinking? You specifically called me a moron for drinking last night," Amy says, annoyance rising in her voice.

"Yes, okay? That's all," Lauren huffs out, glaring.

"That doesn't explain the shirt," she arches her eyebrow again.

"It's none of your business!" She all but shouts.

Amy glances at Lauren's stained sheets again, then at her dress on the floor, and then at Lauren. She realizes exactly what happened. "Lauren . . . Did you lose your virginity last night?"

Part of the small girl wants to scream that she didn't, that she isn't a slut. But she can't. The words won't leave her throat, they're half formed. So she looks down, ashamed, and tries to whisper the truth. Her voice is lost though.

"Just, just nod yes or no," her step-sister manages.

Lauren nods yes.

"What if Mom sees him leaving!?"

* * *

Liam had been struggling to get out safely for a few minutes now. He'd wasted time putting his boxers back on and eavesdropping as sneakily as he could. It now seemed that he had to get the fuck out before Farah saw him.

So he slides down, gripping the ledge in just his boxers, his cock hardened, from the brief sight of the small blonde girl pulling _his_ shirt on over her breasts, letting it fall far past her thighs.

He isn't sure why Lauren Cooper, the biggest bitch in school, suddenly turns him on so much. He figures it's because he's seen her without the blazer and mini skirt now.

"Fuck, fuck," Liam hisses, realizing how far away the ground really is. _I'll fuck my ankles up if I drop down,_ he realizes, groaning.

He sees Amy and Lauren thundering down the stairs, rushing to Farah, who he can see is about to turn around. He needs to fucking drop and run _now._ Why won't his hands release the ledging!?

He faintly hears Lauren and Amy simultaneously shout something muffled.

His ankles must be forced back in several inches when he hits the ground. He swears several times, blinking back tears and kicking his ankles back out, not wanting them to lock like that.

Lauren glares at him, shoeing him away, mouthing, "run, asshole."

So he does.

* * *

"Lauren, sweetie, whose shirt is that? It's so big on you, and your hair's all messy . . ." Farah trails off, curiously.

"Oh, this? I got cold last night and Pablo had a spare shirt in his car, so he gave it to me, and I didn't braid my hair last night to keep it from getting messed up, that's all," Lauren quickly defends.

"Oh, that Pablo is such a gentleman," their mom smiles, relieved. "You know, I was worried for a second, I thought maybe you'd brought a boy home last night and got drunk or something."

A pang of guilt shoots through Lauren, like she didn't already feel shitty (and sore). "Of course not, Farah, I wouldn't do something that stupid," she fakes a smile.

"Yeah, Lauren would never," Amy nods in agreement. Liars, they're both liars.

"I know, it was silly of me, she's a good girl, you both are. And, Amy, I wanted to say that I'm sorry, I shouldn't have grounded you last night, you were just dancing, but my nerves were acting up, sweetie," Farah says, hugging her daughters, "I love you both."

"I love you, too, Mom," Amy murmurs.

Lauren says nothing for a moment, remorse consuming her. Then, "I love you too, Farah. You're the mom I always wanted." _And I wish I could be the daughter you deserve._

She's never felt so terrible and stupid before.

* * *

She almost hides behind Amy when they get to the drug shop, she just doesn't want to see Liam anywhere. Or Shane. Fuck Shane. And Liam. Lauren cringes. She _already_ fucked Liam. He's seen her naked, fucked her senseless, came inside her, he's taken her virginity and her dignity.

"Lauren, I . . . Did you use . . . Protection?" Amy asks, out of nowhere. They'd just come to get something for Lauren's hangover

". . . No," she whispers, "but it's fine, pregnancy wise, I'm safe with that."

"Oh, are you on the pill?" Amy furrows her eyebrows.

"Something like that," Lauren lies.

"Okay?" She raises an eyebrow.

"Amy! I'm so, so sorry!" Karma exclaims, running up to them, "oh, hey, Lauren." And now it's awkward as fuck.

"I'll be going now, I'll talk to you on the way home, Amy," Lauren announces before walking off to shop.

"Okay!" Amy shouts after her step-sister. Then she realizes she's alone. With Karma. Who she gave her heart to last night. And who rejected her. "Um . . . Hey . . ."

"Hey, look, Amy, I'm so, so, _so_ sorry. I _wish_ I loved you like that and I _wish_ I hadn't slept with Liam, it was stupid of me to let some boy and popularity make me so oblivious to how you were feeling, I was blind and stupid and a bad friend to you. I'm so sorry, I know I can never make it up to you but can we please keep being best friends?" The redhead apologizes.

Amy blinks, taking in what Karma just said to her. "That . . . That is way too sweet, Karma, of course I forgive you." They hug, Amy pretends she doesn't know what she does, but she saw his face, she saw the blood, and she saw the shame in her step-sister's eyes. _I wish I could tell you._ But it's not her secret to tell.

"So, what's up with the queen of mean?" Karma asks, trying to lighten the mood.

"Lauren? Oh, well, she . . . She lost her virginity last night, she got really drunk and . . . I'm a shitty sister for telling you this," Amy curses, "fuck, I shouldn't have said anything."

"Lauren lost her virginity last night? To who!? Oh, my God, this is too good!" Karma exclaims, grinning.

"Karma, this isn't good. There was blood on her sheets, she actually seemed human, she was terrified and she looked so guilty . . . They didn't use protection, she could be pregnant, we came to get something for her hangover and I'm gonna get her a morning after pill," Amy whispers, clutching her best friend's wrists.

"Amy, this is Lauren, the meanest girl we know, she's terrible to you, this is great! We have dirt on her! Just tell me who it was," the redhead babbles.

"This is _bad._ Look, Karma, last night she _comforted_ me after you rejected me, she kept me from getting wasted and doing something dumb, and she's scared now, she lost her virginity to some dick, she could be pregnant," the blonde insists, angrily.

"She . . . Comforted you? . . . Amy, I'm so sorry, I didn't know . . . Is she okay?" Karma asks, her eyes filling with sadness. She's so selfish. So fucking selfish.

"I don't know, and I don't know who it was, he was already gone when I came in with her breakfast," she lies. Half of her wants to scream at Karma, "LIAM TOOK LAUREN'S VIRGINITY! WHY DO YOU LIKE HIM SO MUCH? HE'S TERRIBLE!" but she knows it's not her secret to tell.

"That's awful, we have to figure out who it was, we can egg his house! And we have to make sure he doesn't have anything, I mean, if you say she's like human now, I trust you, she is. We've gotta make that douche pay for taking advantage of her like that," Karma babbles, senselessly, plotting away.

"Karma! She . . . She doesn't want that, she just wants to forget about it, do you blame her?" The blonde asks, the guilt gnawing at her. _She_ did nothing, it was _Liam_ who fucked up (and fucked Lauren).

"Oh, okay . . ."

The two stand there, awkwarder than before, not sure what to say. What is there to say? They've reconciled, Karma is sorry, and they both know the secret. At least, Karma knows part of it. And the rest is killing Amy inside.

"Bad hangover, huh?" The cashier asks, chuckling slightly. Karma and Amy both turn their heads in that direction. The small blonde rubs her back, wincing in pain. Her annoyance and pain are both obvious.

"Yeah," Lauren answers shortly with a scowl. The door opens, a tall, handsome boy walks in. "And it just got worse," she whispers.

"D'you have a one night stand or something?" The cashier chuckles.

"Something like that," the blonde breathes out, horrified as Liam spots her.

"Oh, fuck."

* * *

Hold back that follow or favorite,

And trade it for a review,

It'll serve as feedback &amp; motivation for my writing tricks,

And otherwise, I might just slap you.

\- Queen Alison the Obstinate


	3. Tongue Tied

**A/N: So, for the record, this isn't necessarily Cooperfeld, it might end up that way, I don't know right now what endgame will be for everyone _and,_ as much as I _know_ you'll all hate me, I've added an OC whose first appearance is in this chapter. He's likable, I promise. Not a Gary Stu or anything like that, he's definitely got his enemies and flaws and shit, just let me characterize him and you should be able to like him. **

**A****lso, watch out, Liam gets to show off some of his canon character development from episode four since I felt like someone needed to make Liam something other than a two dimensional douchebag in a fanfic.**

* * *

They stand there for a second. Liam awkwardly tries to not look at the small girl as she glares him down, the best she can, not even glancing at Shane, two feet behind Liam.

"Liam! Heyyyyy," Karma exclaims, trailing off and looking back and forth between him and Lauren.

"Hi, Karma," he awkwardly nods, "Amy," he nods again, "uh, Lauren."

"Liam," Amy nods back. Lauren crosses her arms, glaring, and shifting her weight to her left hip.

"Well, this is awkward," Liam notes, his shoulders tense.

"No shit, Sherlock," the small blonde deadpans with an eye roll.

"Aren't you just a hairball of sass, Laurie?" _Oh, hell no. Not you, not now. Fuck my life._

"Did you just call me Laurie, dickwad?" She growls, gripping the white paper bag the cashier had put her hangover pills in tightly. Shane has a way of pissing her off to an extent she can't really explain without breaking something.

"Yeah, do you need hearing aids or something, biatch?" Shane smiles smugly, pleased with himself. He'd been getting annoyed with _all_ of them focusing on _Liam _and just ignoring him.

"Ugh, I'm not in the mood for this," she groans, throwing her head back in annoyance.

"Why not, princess? Wait, let me guess, it has something to do with what's in the bag. And your messy hair and hoodie and jeans. Ooh, what delicious trouble did you get into at the wedding?" He asks, grinning evilly.

"I didn't get into 'trouble' at my dad and Farah's wedding, Royal Douchebag," she glares, trying to repress the vague memory of Liam Booker's cock inside her.

"Sure, you didn't, Lauren. What's in the bag?" Shane presses, his eyebrow shooting up and his dark eyes rolling.

"None of your beeswax," she all but hisses.

"Uh, if it involves secrets and anyone at Hester, it's my beeswax, sweetie," he says in a "duh, bitch" voice.

"I dunno, man, maybe you should drop it this time," Liam cuts in.

"Yeah, Liam's right," Amy nods in agreement.

"Definitely," Karma adds.

"Amy's agreeing with Liam? Now I have to know," he says, looking at Lauren carefully. He makes a mental note of her hair and the shameful look in her eyes, and how she just rubbed her back. "Oh, my God, you had drunken sex didn't you!? Ha, I always knew you were easy," he laughs, clapping slightly.

"Shut up! That's a total lie! I'm a virgin, dickhead!" She exclaims, an angry blush on her face.

"There's no way, not with the way you keep rubbing your back and how shameful you look, you totally hooked up with someone, your boyfriend will be _thrilled_," Shane smirks, pointing to said things.

"_Ex_-boyfriend and I did not! Do you wanna see my effing hymen or something?" She snaps.

"Ex? Ooh, so it was angry revenge sex! This is fabulous, I'm so telling everyone," he laughs again.

Karma and Amy exchange looks of concern. This is bad, really bad. Liam's eyes go wide.

"I bet you bought morning after pills!" Shane grins, grabbing the bag from her. She curses, she didn't pull it back in time.

"I did not, you creep!" She exclaims, her blush darkening.

"Then what's . . ." He pauses, pulling the pills out, "this?!"

"Hangover pills, for Nana, she got wasted at the wedding and didn't want Farah and Dad to know," Lauren grumbles, her eyes narrowing as she crosses her arms, letting him read the label.

"Hangover pills? That's it? Lame," he complains.

Liam's eyebrows furrow. _Hangover pills? No morning after pill? She does know we didn't use protection, right? _He steps forward, gently grabbing her wrist, "Lauren, can we talk?" He asks, adding, "in private" in an undertone.

"Whatever," she scoffs, her eyes rolling. "If I'm not back in five minutes, call the cops," she tells Amy, glancing at Karma.

"You won't need to call the cops, I promise," Liam sighs, "it's just a question about the homework for maths."

"Okay then?" Karma awkwardly says, wishing she'd been able to apologize to Liam like she'd planned.

Amy crosses her arms, narrowing her eyes in suspicion. "They don't have math together," she informs Shane and Karma, "Lauren takes AP math. Liam doesn't."

Shane's eyebrow shoots up.

He already _knows_ this can't be good.

* * *

He carefully leads her down an isle in the store, ignoring the cashier's weird looks. They stop, she crosses her arms and waits for him to say something. He doesn't know what to say.

So she sighs and says, "we don't have the same math class."

"We don't?" Liam asks, dumbfounded.

"Yeah, I take AP math, you take regular math," she tells him.

"Oh, really?" He's surprised, he didn't know she was that good at math. Maybe he kinda assumed things because she's blonde and all but still.

"Uhuh, real smooth back there, moron," she scoffs, rolling her eyes.

"Sorry, I didn't know . . ." He trails off, looking down.

"Whatever. So, what is it?" She asks.

"Uh . . . I just wanted to talk to you about . . . Protection. We didn't use any last night and I wanted you to know, I get regular check ups and I don't have anything, the last girl I slept with was . . . Well, I was her first too so you're fine there, but . . . Are you on the pill?" He feels like he shouldn't have said it once it leaves his mouth.

He's a moron.

They both think it. But she's silent for a second, blinking, her posture slouching. She has no clue what the fuck to say to that even though she deflected it so easily when Amy asked.

". . . No," she admits, feebly.

"Do you need me to buy you a morning after pill? I swear, I'll pay for it and, if you need to, you can take it in my car, I can get rid of the box so your parents don't find out - if you're comfortable with that, of course," he offers, trying to make amends.

"It's fine, Liam, I don't need a morning after pill," she tells him.

"What? But what if you're pregnant?! Are you gonna get an abortion? Why don't you need a morning after pill?" He questions, confused and worried and terrified all at once. He doesn't want her to be pregnant, he's not ready to be a dad.

"Just drop it! I'm not pregnant," she hisses.

"How can you know that? I don't shoot blanks, you could be," he whispers. There's fear in his eyes.

"I . . . I can't have kids," she confesses, "there's no way you got me pregnant."

"What?" He blinks, not quite registering it. _She . . . Can't have kids? No, that's too awful to be true._

"I can't have kids, okay?" She snaps, her eyes burning.

"Lauren, I . . . I'm so sorry," Liam breathes out, "I didn't know."

"Well, now you do," she says, harshly.

"I . . ." He trails off. What can he possibly say to this? How can he make this better? He shouldn't have pushed her, damn it! "I shouldn't have pushed you like that."

Lauren stays quiet, blinking back tears. She bites her lip, slightly.

"Are you crying? Oh, God, I'm a horrible person, I'm so sorry," he apologizes. He's not sure what to do but then he remembers Lucas and Molly, the affection, the hugging. The hugging. It's awkward and he doesn't know what the fuck he's doing but then he's hugging her. She's small and shaking against him, not rejecting his hold or accepting it. Her wrists tremble against his chest, her hands in weak fists. She sniffles against him, wishing she could bring herself to push him away and pull herself back together.

"It's okay," she breathes out, a little sob coming too.

"No, it's not," he whispers, stroking her hair, awkwardly.

And then they remember who they are and what happened the last time their bodies were this close and pull apart, swiftly.

"We never speak of this again," she snaps, wiping the tears that had started falling.

"Yeah," he mumbles, nodding.

"Or _that,_" she adds, glaring.

He nods again, feverishly this time. He grips his hands into fists, standing tall and powerful, willing himself to ask her. "Does Amy know?" It slips out, even though he knows. He wants her to admit it.

She steps back even further, looking down. "Yeah, she . . . She saw the blood on my sheets and . . . She figured it out. I had to tell her."

"We can't let anyone else figure it out," he tells her, "I _hate_ lying but this has to stay secret, for both our sake."

"Agreed," she nods, "now let's hurry back before they get too suspicious."

* * *

Shane hadn't been able to hear jackshit of their conversation. He'd tried but they'd been quiet, all he'd heard clearly was Lauren exclaiming, "just drop it!" which probably meant that Liam was busting her ass about the hangover pills. And that meant that Liam would tell him everything.

Right?

They're best friends, of course Liam will tell him everything Lauren - that she-devil - said. Unless Lauren made him swear to not. Which Lauren probably did because she's, well, Lauren.

Ugh. That pisses him off. A lot.

"Could you hear anything?" Karma asks him, nervously.

"No, nothing but her being a biatch, no surprises there," he says, as much as it disappoints him.

"She's not that bad," Amy defends,"okay that was weird but she was really nice to me last night, after . . . You know, she gave me cake and took alcohol from me so I wouldn't do anything dumb. She actually seems human now."

"Lauren? Lauren Cooper? The tiny, blonde Barbie doll is human?" Shane asks, blinking.

Amy wishes she could say she doesn't understand where he's coming from with that. But she does so all she can do is shrug and make a "kinda" face.

Karma opens her mouth to say something. Right as Lauren and Liam get back, looking somewhere between nervous, impatient, disgruntled, and guilty. Most of the guilt and nervousness on Liam's behalf, naturally.

"Hey, we were just talking about you guys," is the first thing to come out of Karma's stupid mouth. She mentally face palms as Shane and Amy both shoot her "shut the fuck up" expressions, Lauren's eyebrow raising, angrily.

"Oh, were you?" Lauren all but growls.

"Uhhhh, nice weather today!" Liam spits out, trying to keep the blonde girl from killing anyone.

Instead, the others turn to him, Lauren glaring, Shane mouthing "what the fuck," Amy's eyebrows furrowing, and Karma looking thankful.

He smiles nervously, his eyes lingering on Karma. She looks so beautiful - and he shouldn't even be mad at her, he's the asshole who had drunken sex with a girl he imagined was her to take all his anger out and ended up hurting Lauren. He hadn't meant to when they'd started. He wanted to ravish her, she looked so hot that night - beautiful, even - but he'd meant to be gentle.

It's all his fault that he has to lie now, he deserves this pain. Lauren doesn't. Even though she's mean and does things like stand on his car with a megaphone after writing "home wrecker" on his windows in lipstick and rallying his exes.

"You're an idiot," Lauren snarls before turning around and stomping out.

"Sorry?" He calls after her.

"I should go get her, she didn't get her receipt," Amy awkwardly informs them before rushing after her step-sister.

"I'll - damn it, Amy! Don't abandon me in the awkwardness!" Karma shouts at her best friend. _Well . . . At least I can apologize to Liam like I wanted to! Even though he's being really weird._

"So," Liam murmurs, his hands in his jean pockets.

"So . . ." She trails off.

"So?" Shane encourages.

"I'm really sorry!" The two exclaim at the same time. "Wait, what are you sorry for?"

"Lying. I shouldn't have, it was wrong and terrible of me, you were always telling me how you didn't like lying and I should've just told you the truth or not led you on or anything but what I did. It's entirely my fault and I've been a really bad friend to Amy and a really bad person in general lately. I wish I could take it all back but I can't so I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me even though I don't deserve it," she apologizes, desperately.

"You do, really do deserve to be forgiven. I'm the asshole," he mutters, "I overreacted, I totally forgot that I was at fault too, I mean, I knew you had a girlfriend - well, thought you did - but I slept with you anyways, like a complete jerk, I'm really sorry for blowing up on you like that."

"No, Liam, it's my fault, I just made you believe she was okay with it and everything, that was really wrong of me," she says, softly.

"Really, it's mine, I shouldn't have gone along with it, I wouldn't have if you'd had a boyfriend and that's shitty," he assures her.

Karma opens her mouth, that guilty look in her eyes, and Shane groans and says, "it's both your faults! You were both bad people, now kiss and make up - wait! No! No kissing! That's how we got here."

"Yeah, definitely no more kissing," Liam nods, nervously, the memory of the first kiss, after the blonde had nodded, coming pouring back. It was a drunken haze but he'd approached her so quickly, with such urgency, and she did the same. Their lips had connected softly at first, a gentle kiss to test the waters. And Liam knew then and there that Tommy was a lucky bastard for getting to kiss her whenever he wanted.

They turn their heads at the sound of a struggle and footsteps. Two blonde girls emerge, the smaller one hissing swears. Amy and Lauren. Fighting. Finally, something normal.

"I don't care, Amy! I just wanna go home and wait for this _stupid _day to be over!" Lauren shouts.

"I'm getting the fucking thing, Lauren!" Amy curses, marching past them.

Karma yanks Shane back, telling him not to follow her for his own sake. She knows exactly what Amy is buying. And so does the small girl who runs out.

Liam looks around, bewildered. Should he chase after her or something? But she's already gone.

* * *

The tears are ready to flow by the time she's out the door and running home. "Why the fuck is everyone reminding me I can't have kids?" She hisses, looking down and trying to breathe.

She smacks into someone.

"Lauren?" She knows that voice. It's her step-brother, Dylan.

"Dylan?" She whispers.

"Yeah, sweetie," he answers, carefully hugging her, "what's wrong?"

She doesn't answer, breathing in his cologne. His chest is warm and firm as he hugs her, maybe a full head taller than her.

"Sweetie, just tell me," he whispers, rubbing her back, "it's okay, I promise, baby girl."

"I had sex with Liam Booker," she murmurs, gripping his purple shirt's fabric.

Panic seeping in, he freezes; not breathing or rubbing her back like before, just standing there. Wide eyed, he tries to move his arms to comfort her. This is Lauren, he loves her, he has to comfort her.

"I'm such an idiot," she whispers.

"No, you're not, Lauren. It was just a mistake, it's okay, it happens," Gary comforts, hugging her tightly.

"I was drunk and angry and he was there and then he was kissing me and I'm so stupid, it was my first time," she sobs.

"It's okay, it's okay," he chokes out, a golf ball rising in his throat. His chest hurts, his stomach sinks, everything hurts and he doesn't even know why.

"It's not okay," she whispers.

"Hey, look at me," he instructs, pulling away and looking down. He puts a finger under her chin, tilting it up so she looks into his vividly blue eyes. "You are beautiful and smart and funny and none of that changes because a little bit of skin got broken when were drunk, it's okay."

". . . Promise?" She whispers, not daring to break eye contact.

"I promise, sweetie," he assures her.

As far as he's concerned, in that moment, it's just him and her, and all other people.

* * *

She takes the stupid pill that won't do anything and angrily throws the box in their trash bin. Glaring, she turns to face her step-sister. "I hope you're happy now," she spits out.

"Happy that you won't get pregnant and have to raise a family with Liam? Yeah, Lauren, I'm happy. You got drunk, slept with the boy Karma is - for some reason - in _love_ with, and you didn't use protection, I'm just looking out for you, Lauren, why can't you appreciate that?" Amy asks, angrily.

"Because it's none of your business!" The light blonde screams.

"You're my sister!" The dirty blonde exclaims.

"_Step_-sister, Amy," Lauren breathes out, anger clear.

"Excuse me for caring," Amy growls, slamming the door shut as she stomps back to her room.

They both know they won't be walking into Hester together tomorrow.

* * *

Amy runs to Karma the next day, not bothering with greetings. "Lauren's a bitch," she says instead.

"I thought she was human now," Karma says, confused.

"Nope, she was a total bitch last night when I bought her a morning after pill," Amy corrects her best friend.

"Really? So are we back to hating her?" The redhead asks.

"Definitely," the blonde nods, "now let's get to class."

Shane raises an eyebrow at the two, rushing to class. He's not sure what to think of that other then _here comes the drama. _And then he grins, crossing his arms and giving a quick, one shoulder shrug. Chemistry can wait for him to go do recon on little, bitchy Lauren.

He walks in big strides (his outfit is _so_ not fit for running today) to Lauren's locker. He has to hurry so he won't get caught in the halls during class, he texts his lock picking guy, telling him simply to get to Lauren Cooper's locker and open it when Shane gets there.

It takes him a few minutes to get there but he gets there, unseen, and smiles at his lock picking guy who greets him with a fist bump. He checks his watch twice while Daniel gets her jammed locker door open, it takes a timely two minutes and 24 seconds.

He begins his sleuthing promptly, moving things around and scanning through books in her neat locker. He also fixes his hair in her small vanity mirror and examines her cup of makeup related tools and sticks and shit, briefly. There must be _something_ good to use buried in there - a note from Amy, a receipt for the morning after pill he's certain she must've gotten at some point, there has to be _something _confessing her dirty little secret!

And then he sees it, tucked away under her pink locker carpeting (he must admit that she has nice interior decorating skills, there are slim, cute photos of her with friends - presumably from her old life in Dallas, even one with her and an ex boyfriend - as well as some photos of her with Leila and Lisbeth and then her with Farah and one with her and her dad, - he swears there's a hint of ripped photo left, probably Tommy related - she has a few simple, feminine stickers lining the locker to contrast the bland color, and her vanity mirror is simple, subtle and pretty).

Lauren Cooper's phone.

"Oh, this is too good!" He exclaims, laughing slightly. He scrolls through her texts, reading quickly, until he finds something interesting. From a number he swears he recognizes.

_"I'm really sorry i was drunk and taking my anger out on you last night. I was a huge asshole and theres no way for me to take that back even though i wish i coould. I shouldnt have taken your virginity like that I'm sorry Lauren."_

"No. Fucking. Way."

* * *

**A/N: Tell me what you think of the comfort Lauren's received in this chapter, who did it better? Why? Tell me what you think of Shane's discover, do you think he knows that it's Liam's number? What do you think of Amy's reaction to Lauren bitching her out about the morning after pill? Do you think Liam and Karma's apologies were good enough to be forgiven? How is Dylan, the OC, looking to you so far? **

**Answer any of these questions in a review.**

* * *

Hold back that follow or favorite,

And trade it for a review,

It'll serve as feedback &amp; motivation for my writing tricks,

And otherwise, I might just slap you.

\- Queen Alison the Obstinate


	4. Silence of the Phones

He slips her phone into his pocket and runs (as best as he can in his not at all fit for running attire) all the way to class as the bell rings. He's late but the teacher doesn't care and neither does he. Not a word of chemistry sticks in his brain, he's too caught up in the phone in his pocket.

The bell rings and he only goes to second period because he has the same class as Amy which means he can update her on his findings. Of course she'll be fascinated by the new gossip, she hates Lauren again.

Amy is confused by him rushing over to her and whispering about big news. She makes that "what the hell is happening?" face and he almost rolls his eyes but instead he pulls the phone (which his fingers haven't left) out of his pocket and shows her the text under the desk. Her eyes almost pop out of her cranium and her mouth drops into a big O. So far, he likes her reaction. But then she's telling him he has to give back the phone and just forget about it.

"Excuse me?" He doesn't even whisper.

"Shane, you can't steal her phone," she hisses, "and learn to whisper!"

"You don't understand, this is groundbreaking! I have serious dirt on Lauren Cooper now, Leila and Lisbeth were totally useless for finding out what the pills were for but now I have proof that she's a skank! I just have to figure out whose number it is, it's so familiar - maybe it's a girl! Oh, my God, Lauren could be a lesbo," he whispers excitedly.

"No! No to all of that," Amy exasperatedly shuts him down, "we are giving her her phone back before she murders us both and you are forgetting this ever happened." She snatches the phone out of his hands. Well, she tries. Shane, feisty and selfish as ever, keeps his grip and tugs back.

"Yes, yes to all of that, Amy," he whines, "this is major."

"This is not happening," she corrects him.

"Why not? You hate her again, Karma hates her again, I hate her still, everybody hates her," he pouts.

"Because she's a person, Shane. And _if_ it is a girl she lost it to, you promised not to out people anymore, remember? Gay scouts honor?" Shane silently curses Amy and her lesbian guilt tactics. Okay, maybe they aren't lesbian guilt tactics (her being Karma-sexual tugs at the back of his memories) but still.

"Fine," he groans, releasing the phone.

If she knew how to do a cartwheel, she would definitely celebrate with one in that moment. She may hate Lauren for being an ungrateful brat, but it's still not her secret to out, and she feels like a much better person for keeping it this time.

* * *

Lauren is avoiding them all, even Leila and Lisbeth, at lunch. Shane makes evil eyes at her and he doesn't even get an eye roll in return. She just doesn't want to deal with any of their shit. Not even Dylan's.

Except she just ran into Dylan.

"You're avoiding everyone, aren't you?" He asks, raising an eyebrow.

"Why the fuck do you always read my mind like that?" She snaps, crossing her arms with false fire.

Dylan looks down, sighing. "Honey, I know you're all kinds of screwy right now, and I know you're upset at, well, everyone, but running away isn't going to fix anything."

"You don't know that!" The blonde exclaims.

"I do, but I'm not going to stop you from trying. If it's what you think is best for you, I support it," he tells her, kissing her forehead.

". . . Thank you," she whispers as he walks away, she calls after him, "you're a good step-brother! Whoa, did I just say that?"

"I know," he laughs, smiling.

"Don't remind me of the lesbos!" She shouts, throwing her phone at him.

"'Kay, bae!" He teases. She screams, picks her phone up, and storms off. Fuck these douchebags.

But she already fucked one of them.

* * *

"Wait, wait, _wait._ You _stole _her phone!? Dude! That's illegal! You committed an actual crime! This isn't _Pretty Little Liars,_ you're not just going to get away with it, Shane!" Liam yells, punching his best friend in the arm.

"Oh, relax, I gave it back," he scoffs.

"After going through her private texts!" The artist exclaims, "that's so illegal!"

"Ugghhh, you sound like my mother," Shane groans.

"Dude!"

"Ugggghhhhh."

"I can't believe you. Look, just promise you won't try and figure out who sent the text, okay?" Liam runs a hand through his hair, panic seeping in at the idea of his best friend (and Hester's biggest blabber mouth) finding out.

"What's with you and Amy and that? You know what, whatever, fine, I promise, _Mom,_" he crosses his arms, practically pouting.

Liam sighs out a thank you and hugs him. As long as Shane keeps his mouth shut, maybe it won't get out and ruin everything. Everything, including Karma. He really wants to be with her. It's selfish, he knows that, he went and he took all his anger out on Lauren and now he wants to be with Karma. He's such an idiot.

An idiot Amy is glaring at. What the hell did he do to her now? She and Karma were faking it, she has nothing to be pissed off about. After all, she hates Lauren again.

. . .

Right?

But, for a girl who hates the only reason she has to hate him, she sure seems like she wants to rip his fucking spleen out through his throat. And, for a girl who was faking being a lesbian, she sure seems attached to Karma. Literally. They're holding hands. Their fingers are intertwined and Karma is stroking the back of Amy's hand.

"I thought you said they were faking it," he breathes out. Shane glances down at their hands.

"They were." The past tense kills Liam a little bit.

"I know who sent Lauren that text."

**A/N: So, tell me, what do you think Liam's going to say? Do you think he'll come clean? How do you think Lauren's "ignore these assholes" thing is going to turn out? Do you think she'll turn to someone? What do you think Karmy's hand holding means? What do you think Shane's gonna do next?**


End file.
